DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Lando the tiger shark pinged off the Daytona Beach coast Tuesday morning. OCEARCH reported the shark was about 6 miles away from the Central Florida coast.
The tiger shark is swimming closer to Orlando, its namesake. SeaWorld named the shark after the City Beautiful, shortly after he was first tagged off Fernandina Beach Feb. 15.
The 10-foot shark first pinged March 3 by the Bahamas. The adult tiger shark passed by Cuba before circling up toward North Florida again.
OCEARCH’s shark tracking technology reveals Lando has been staying near Florida’s eastern coast, after his travels through the Caribbean. This is the closest Lando has been to Central Florida in the past month.
This morning @TigerSharkLando is pinging about 6 miles off the coast of Daytona Beach, FL. The 10-foot shark is named by @SeaWorld after the city of Orlando. pic.twitter.com/pk88kcX2Cn
— OCEARCH (@OCEARCH) May 28, 2019
His previous pings reveal Lando enjoys hanging out by the Sunshine State, especially as the waters warm. OCEARCH research reveals Lando likely cruised the Caribbean searching for warmer waters as temperatures dropped near the continental United States.
The 464-pound shark is supporting OCEARCH research that the continental shelf is a hot spot for sharks during the winter and spring.
To date, OCEARCH has tagged seven tiger sharks. Lando is the most recently tagged, and the last one to come by Central Florida.
OCEARCH uses its global shark tracker to keep tabs on every shark the nonprofit organization tags. Scientists are working to learn where sharks mate and have their babies, to see how water temperatures and sea life affect these predators.
To follow Lando's track, visit ocearch.org or follow him on Twitter at @TigerSharkLando.